Ancient Jungle Cool

My first degree is in ancient history and I have a love of ancient civilizations. None are more exotic to me than the Mayan of Central America and nobody did more to fuel my imagination than Frederick Catherwood who in 1844 illustrated the book Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan. My father brought that book home for me at a time when I was big into castles especially the ruined ones in the Black Forest. We lived very close to one that had only one working tower left on the top of a heavily forested area near Lahr in Germany. Every year our school classes would visit there and we would run all over the walls and stone and play Narnia. I supposed when he saw a copy of that book he figured ruins were ruins and he was right. I truly can say that I enjoy seeing what is left than what was ever whole in the first place. Can't you just see the Phantom fighting evil surrounded by these stele and temples overgrown by the jungle? What makes it even greater is that these places actually EXISTED and still exist. Thanks to Darius and his terrific tumblr for posting a pic that reminded me of how much I love these illustrations. Tumblrs rule.

http://dariuswhiteplume.tumblr.com/